Words That We Couldn't Say
by toonamifan666
Summary: Communication is a big part of a healthy relationship. When they do not to communicate, they suffer. All them have words that they wish they could say, but they don't. Some pray and some hope. Some play games and some break. In the end, it's all due to those words.
1. Hiding

**Author's Note:**

 **I would like to thank my brother, toona666, for reading and helping me make sure I wasn't getting off track.**

* * *

 **Chapter I**

 **Hiding**

 _We couldn't say them_

 _So now we just pray them_

 _Words that we couldn't say_

The sounds of fighting could be heard during the night. While many would be resting at this time, there were those that relish the night and the shroud of cover it brings. Some just like the extra privacy this time brings, such as the two using one of Beacon's practice rooms.

"That's good! Now, again."

Here they can train without distractions or interference. Here she can be alone with him and enjoy the time spent together as she helps him. As she tries to gather the courage to finally tell him those words. To tell him how she feels.

"Great! Let's try something different."

"Uh, are you sure?"

"Yes."

She is not even sure if he is interested in her. Some of their friends had noticed how she felt and how she struggled with it. They all tried to offer their help but she would tell them no. She would say that she was fine and that there was nothing she needed help with. Every once in awhile though she would wonder if this whole situation was affecting her but as always, she would shake those thoughts from her mind. With that she would set aside her feelings to help him. _Don't focus on those, just help him._ That was her mantra, what kept her going.

"Thanks Pyrrha."

"You're welcome Jaune!"

Day after day she continued. Sometimes she had to put off some of her own things in order to help him but she didn't mind. Hopefully this would finally help her gain the courage.

"Jaune, may I talk to you for a moment?"

"Sure, what's up?"

It never did though. She never had the courage. She would come so close but never able to fully finish and express herself.

"It's nothing, actually."

"Oh, well okay then. See you back at the dorm."

To tell him those words she so desperately wanted to. Night after night, week after week, she prayed. Prayed that one day she could finally say those words, if even just to herself.

* * *

 _Funny, ain't it? Games people play_

 _Scratch it, paint it, one and the same_

 _We couldn't find them_

 _So we tried to hide them_

 _Words that we couldn't say_

"You dunce! Can't you do anything right?!"

"Weiss I'm trying-"

"Oh you're 'trying'? Maybe if you were more competent you wouldn't always be trying!"

Yang quickly stepped towards Weiss, putting herself in front of Ruby. "Hey lay off of her! Give her a break!"

Weiss scoffed at Yang. "A break? If we were on a mission, would the Grimm give her a break? Oh that's right! It wouldn't." She took a step forward, her face adopting a stern expression. "So why should I give her break?"

Yang, not backing down, glared at Weiss. "We're not even on a mission and she said she's trying okay? So chill."

Weiss raised her hand and poked Yang. "That is exactly my point! She is always 'trying'!" With her other hand she gestured to Ruby. "If she was more competent she wouldn't always be trying! She's not fit to be leader.

"Oh and let me guess," Yang's glare steeled, "you think you would be a better choice. Right? That you would make such a better leader."

"Of course I would." Weiss smirked. "I've been trained most of my life to be a leader." Yang started to talk but Weiss held up her hand to silence her. Without another word to her, she turned around and began to walk away. Ruby moved out from behind her sister and slowly begin to follow her only for Weiss to stop and look back. "I still say Ozpin made a mistake. I should be leader and if I was, you wouldn't be a part of the team any longer." Finished speaking, she finally turned and left the training room.

Yang stood shocked, still reeling from the fact that Weiss would have to 'balls' to actually dismiss her like that. She stayed like this for several seconds after she left before a glance at Ruby shook her from this state. Ruby looked crushed at Weiss' words and stared at the spot she had just been occupying. Yang walked up to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't let her get to you." Ruby didn't react to her words. She shook her a little bit and she still didn't react. "She can't treat you like that. I'm going to go have a 'talk' with her." This finally brought her from that trance like state. She shrugged off Yang's hand and turned around to face her. "Hey-"

"You don't have to do that Yang. I'm fine." Ruby smiled. "You know she gets in these in moods every once in awhile. It doesn't bother me."

Yang didn't believe her. "C'mon Ruby, don't lie to me."

Ruby shook her head. "I'm fine, really." Her smile dimmed slightly and she hoped Yang wouldn't notice. "I think I'm going to head back to the dorm now okay?"

"Are you sure?" Ruby nodded. "Okay then. We'll be back in a few hours so be careful."

"I will."

"Okay." As Ruby started to walk out of the room, Yang began think. She could tell Ruby was forcing that smile. _Why does she continue to let Weiss walk all over her? And what the hell is with the little princess lately? She's playing Ruby_. She shook her head. _Stop! Trust her and let her handle this. If it doesn't work out I'll step_ in. Pulling herself from her thoughts she turned towards Blake who had been silent throughout the entire ordeal. "What do you think about all of this?"

"I think this is all a waste of time. We could be hunting them down but instead we're here dealing with these idiotic distractions." Blake's stare was harsh.

"Oh come on don't be like that. I said I would help you but nothing is going to get done when you are like this. Just let me help you!"

Blake growled in contempt and glared at Yang. After several minutes, she huffed and turned her gaze slightly from her. "Fine. You really want to help?"

\m/-_-\m/

Ruby made her way back to their room quietly, deep in thought. Her frenzied state of mind only further addled by the run-in with Weiss minutes before. "What is going on?" She walked over and got up on her bed. Laying her head down, she closed her eyes and began to think back to their conversation.

...

She had just left the practice room. As she was making her way back to the dorm she began to think back at the last several weeks. _This is all just so tiring._ Weiss had begun to act differently to Ruby. After promising her that she was going to be a better teammate everything seem to have settled. She even started to spend more time with Ruby outside of schoolwork and assignments. They spent more time together and it seemed like Weiss could possibly be interested in her, at least to Ruby. This continued and everything was going fine until one day Weiss started acting different. She started to question Ruby's every action and push her away. Several days had passed and she still continued to be harsher. Today was just a continuation of this.

"Ruby!"

Torn from her memory she noticed Weiss not to far from her. "Oh, hey Weiss."

Weiss walked up to Ruby and stopped in front of her. She met her eyes briefly before quickly looking anywhere else. "I... wanted to apologize for my behavior and for how I've been treating you. It's... it's not right and I'm sorry."

"Aah... okay. You don't really have to apologize to me."

"No, I do. You see I, aah..." She seemed to be struggling with her words.

Noticing this, Ruby took a step closer to Weiss. "Are you okay?

Weiss shook her head and took a step back. "I, have... I'll speak to you later Ruby." She took off sprinting away from Ruby.

Ruby watched as she ran off. She wasn't sure what was going on with Weiss and this conversation didn't help in the slightest. _At least she_ apologized. With her gone she continued heading back to the team's room.

...

Picking her head up, only to throw it right back into the pillow, she sighed. "I'm just so tired of this right now." Weiss's actions these past days had taken a lot out of her and right now she is unsure how to feel about the entire situation. Several weeks of what she considered progress and then suddenly Weiss is acting worse then when they first met. Like nothing had changed. Now she had just tried to apologize. Then there was whatever was going on with Blake and Yang. _Why can't it all just stop!_ _Ugh, I can't think about all this right now._ _I_ _just_ _want to sleep_ _._

For now she decided to sleep instead of trying to figure out what was going on with her team. All of that could wait until later. Maybe then things would make sense.


	2. Mistakes

**Chapter II**

 **Mistakes**

 _It hurts, don't it? Fools on parade_

 _Taint it, own it, chase it away_

 _We couldn't make them_

 _So we had to break them_

 _Words that we couldn't say_

"Why won't she leave me alone?!" Blake growled out. She finally was able to get away from Yang and have some time to herself. With this free time she went to a rarely used training room. Since it wasn't used much the only things in the room were three training dummies. After pacing for a minute she pulled out Gambol Shroud and started to attack them. All the while her mind was occupied by thoughts of one person, Yang.

…

Yang pleaded with Blake, "Please Blake, you need to stop this! You're running yourself down."

"I'll stop once its finished!"

"Please Blake..."

"No! Don't you understand?! This can't stop until they're gone!"

…

 _Why can't she understand? Why can't none of them understand!?_ They should be tracking down Roman and the White Fang any chance they could and yet the rest of her team was just sitting around, wasting time. Ruby and Weiss were getting caught up in their game and JNPR wouldn't be useless. _Juane shouldn't even be here!_ Her mood soured even more when her thoughts once more turned to Yang. _Can't she just leave me?!_ She was being no more help to her than the other two. Blake paused after destroying the second one. It's tattered remains scattered amongst those of the first.

She turned towards the last one and no longer saw the training dummy. Instead there stood Yang with her usual smirk. Blake's glare grew more venomous as she approached her. Even with her right in her personal area, Yang's smirk never left. This only further stoked the flames of Blake's rage. "What's the matter Blakey? Is the little kitty upset?"

"Can't you ever just be quiet!"

Yang's smirk grew a bit darker. "Why, so you can go brood over your failures?"

Her expression darkened. "Shut up."

"Why? We both know how much of a failure you are."

"...shut up."

"Oh am I making you mad?" Yang turned from her spot to behind Blake. She leaned in and lifted the bow from one side. Leaning in slightly more she whispered, "You're a failure Blake, let's face it. You were a failure as a child and you were a failure in the White Fang. Hell even now you are still a failure."

"Stop." Blake pleaded and Yang just laughed.

"No one wants you here. Why do you think we won't help you? You're just a filthy Faunus."

With these words Blake quickly pulled away from Yang and turned to face her. She spat, "SHUT UP!" Gambol Shroud in hand she slashed. Yang made no motion to protect herself and just let her attack. She quickly had her arm's severed before being followed by a stab to her leg.

Now on her knees she looked up to Blake. She smirked once again as she muttered, "It hurts, doesn't it? Knowing that you're a fool." Yang spat out a bit of blood before continuing, "No one will ever care for you. You know that, right?" Blake raised her weapon and swiftly brought it down on her opponent's neck.

Blinking, she looked down at her felled partner. There was no blood or body, just pieces from a training dummy. _She was never here._ This fact made her even angrier. Yang wouldn't stop badgering her and now she was imagining her. _Why can't I get any peace?!_ She tried to push the words of the figmentation of Yang out of her head as she began to think. She couldn't take much more of Yang. Blake began to pace as she softly contemplated, "There has to be someway to get her to leave." Several minutes passed before her pacing started slowing to a stop as a thought crossed her mind. _She's trying to break me. That must be why she keeps trying to dissuade me and_ interfere. Her pacing grew more frantic as the clock ticked. _There has to be a way. Come on,_ think. "Think!" Suddenly, it came to her. _If she wants to help so bad then why not let her? Why not give her what she wants?_

Blake growled in anger. "Fine then. I'll let her help so much that she will break."

* * *

He didn't mean to distract her.

…

 _Sometimes, baby, we make mistakes_

…

The mission wasn't really difficult and everything was going fine. All they had to do was take care of some Grimm near a small village. It would be no problem for them even without the assistance Jaune and Pyrrha. Once they arrived they got straight to work clearing the Grimm, mostly Ursa and Beowolves, out. Hours were spent on the task before they thought of taking a break. There hadn't been many Grimm in the past hour so they both decided that this would be the best time to rest.

Nora was sitting up in a tree, legs swinging freely back and forth. She was eating a pancake and humming as she sat. After finishing her current pancake she turned to Ren. "This hasn't been a lot fun. I thought they would put up more of a fight or at least swarm us with numbers."

Down below her on the ground Ren chuckled. "We should be thankful that there was only as much as there were. Anymore and the village could have been in a lot more trouble."

She slurped her last pancake up before continuing the conversation. "I guess you're right." Nora jumped down off the branch and landed with her arms wide open. With a frown she looked around the clearing. "They could have at least made it harder for us to kill them. A queen has standards and it's no fun when they don't put up challenge!"

"I know, I know." Their conversation was cut short as the sound of a Beowolf howling in the distance caught their attention. A nod of understanding was shared before they quickly packed up and started heading in the direction of the creature. As they moved closer though neither one of them could pick up anymore sound from the Grimm. Quietly Ren whispered back to Nora, "Be alert." The two slowed their movements, glancing back and forth as they made their way further through the forest.

Out of the corner of her eye Nora noticed movement. "Ren, I think I found one. I'll go take care of it."

As she moved away from him he continued forward. No more than a couple of yards had been crossed when his eyes were immediately drawn to a small clearing in front of him. There three Beowolves emerged from the surrounding foliage. Sliding StormFlower from his sleeves he began his attack. Quickly he took out the youngest Beowolf before having to dodge a swipe from one of the others. Ren jumped and fired at the back of the creature below him. Still in the air, he note of the sounds of Nora off in the distance fighting. This moment of distraction caused him to just barely escape a hit as he touched the ground. Not letting himself be shaken he once again began to fire. While dodging yet another strike he noticed one of the spikes on the back looked loose. Seeing how this could work to his advantage, he rapidly formed a plan and charged the beast. Leaping once more he jumped over the Beowolf and landed on it's back. Grabbing the spike, he broke it off with little force. Quickly Ren jumped off and moved to the side of its head. Still grasping the broken spike he shoved it into the head and using his aura, pushed it all the way through. The creature crumbled and fell dead to the forest floor. With his fight done, Ren to a second to try and catch his breath.

…

 _Dark and hazy, prices we pay_

…

Suddenly he heard a growl from behind. _How could I forget about the third one?_ Anymore thought was cut off when Ren yelled out in pain as the fierce claws connected with his back. He didn't need a scroll to know his aura was very low now.

A distance away Nora was in the middle of fighting a Death Stalker and several Ursa. She had just knocked one of the Ursa away with Magnhild when she heard Ren yell out. With no Grimm right next to her she rushed to the clearing. Arriving at the edge she saw a Beowolf standing above Ren. Without a moment of hesitation she transformed her weapon and fired, killing it. It took a moment but he finally pushed himself off of the ground and raised a hand in thanks. Not a second later he stopped and motioned behind her. "LOOK OUT!" The Death Stalker had followed her and it's stinger firmly planted itself through her arm when she turned around. Nora gasped in pain from the intrusion and the preceding collision with a tree. As she slid down the bark two Ursa joined the Death Stalker in surrounding her. She had no time to even begin to defend herself before they began their vicious onslaught.

…

 _I sit here on my shelf_

 _Just talkin' to myself_

…

As soon as Ren saw the Death Stalker he started running. When he saw the Ursa appear he activated the distress beacon to send a signal back to their transport. With no time to spare he fired his weapons, drawing their attention. Within a minute of continued fire he was able to take down one of the Ursa but with how exhausted he was, he wouldn't be able to make it to her in time.

Luckily the transport was able made it to their location rapidly. The ship, equipped with weapons, made quick work of the Grimm. Once rain of ammunition halted he rushed over to his fallen partner. Kneeling, he cradled her head as he gently shook her. "Come on Nora, stay awake." In the distance not to far away he could hear the ship landing and silently wished they would move a bit faster. "Are you really going to let a few measly Grimm be the end of the queen?" She didn't stir at his words. Ren continued to try and get a response from Nora even as they were moved on to the ship.

…

 _Words that we couldn't say_

…

Once Nora was secured the ship took off and raced back towards it's destination. All of the sound around them was mute to Ren. His only focus was her, his partner. _How could I have forget about that third one?_ He didn't even register the medics around them even more. All he could see was her mostly still body. _This wouldn't have happened if I just remembered._ Gently whispering he pleaded, "You can make it."

"Dammit..."

"...losing her!

"We need to get her heart going!"

"Please... don't leave."


	3. Long Endless Nights

**Author's Note:**

I meant to have this chapter done two years ago. I was actually in the middle of writing it back then before I killed my computer and lost everything. Lost all motivation for it then. But I've been thinking about it lately and finally decided to finish my first RWBY story. It's not what I was originally going to do but I feel this is better.

Before I forget the lyrics are taken from the song "Words That We Couldn't Say" by the Seatbelts and Steve Conte from _Cowboy Bebop_. This is what inspired the story. Anyways I hope you enjoy.

And cry.

* * *

 **Chapter III**

 **Long Endless Nights  
**

…

 _Someday, maybe_

 _We'll make it right_

…

Ren quietly entered the building as the sun began to creep out of the shroud of night, making sure not to damage the flowers he was carrying. Like most of the other times he had come here it was uneasily quiet with an overbearingly sterile atmosphere. Silently, as not to disturb the other occupants, he made his to sign in. It did not take long as he was already very familiar with the process and what was required.

The hallways were just as the rest of the facility. Corridors of piercing white that would unnerve and could confuse you until you were lost in their seemingly unending maze. He, however, would not get lost. Once he learned the way he would never lose it.

As such he quickly made his way to a door that stood alongside a wall of identical copies save for the writing on them. Like most things he quietly opened the door and entered. Sometimes like today he was surprised by how the room differed from that of outside.

Unlike that of most of the dwelling the room was painted in a soft dark blue. The lights looked to be more like what you would see in a house rather than the abrasive sort that lined every square inch outside. They were not on in the early morning however, allowing the natural rays of sunlight to peek through the slightly opened curtains. In all it created a more peaceful atmosphere that helped to put him a more relaxed manner.

With that pause he began moving around the room. A vase with fresh water sat on the table next to her. Making a note to himself to thank the nurses he put the flowers into the vase and grabbed a chair from the table, pulling it to alongside the bed. He began like he always did by simply stating, "Good morning, Nora."

…

 _Until that day_

 _Long endless nights_

…

"I miss you." Ren softly grasped her hand and allowed a forlorn smile to grace his face. Seeing her like this always made him lose his composure, and it always took him a few moments or minutes to recover enough to continue.

"I'm sorry I missed a couple of days but we had to do a mission. Ruby came with us to fill in for you. She did good but it wasn't the same without you. I know you would think that Yang would be the one to fill that role, but she couldn't and there wasn't anyone else we knew really available either because of the tournament or personal reasons." Ren paused. He seemed to struggle with something for a moment before he continued, "I wish I could tell you that everything is alright back at Beacon, but I don't want to lie to you. I won't lie to you. Not now or ever." He stared intently at her face, holding her hand, as he made his vow.

After making it he allowed himself to relax back into the seat slightly and happier smile graced his face. While still holding her hand he started, "But not everything is so gloom and there is some good news though that I know you will love. Pyrrha has been doing much better lately. I'm not sure exactly what happened between her and Jaune but I know something did. I wish I knew what it was but all that matters right now is that she is finally doing better." Ren grasped her hand a bit tighter after this.

"I know you were really worried for her and so was I, but she's healthier looking and is stronger than she's been in a long time." Ren loosened his grip and took a breath. Nora and him had tried many times to help Pyrrha but nothing had worked. He really did wish he knew what had finally helped her to move past whatever was troubling her and causing her harm. Maybe one day she would tell them but he was just glad she was getting better. "I know they are not together though, so I guess you were right. Jaune seemed fine at first afterwards but lately, that has seemed to change as she has since started spending time with Cinder. I'm not sure if you remember her exactly but she's the leader of that team from Mistral. The one Ruby crashed into in the hallway. I know I'm not as good as you are with matters of the heart especially given Pyrrha and Jaune, but I think there might be something between them. I'm curious if you will think so too." Here the smile completely left his face. "Speaking of Ruby though, there isn't any good news. Simply put, Team RWBY isn't doing so well."

Ren took a pause to take another deep breath before continuing. "Yang couldn't help us on the mission I told you about because she was in the hospital. She still is and she is even in this same place. I was going to go visit her later and see if she's up to visiting you. That all depends on how she is doing today. I'm, not sure exactly what happened as the they've all been tight lipped but somehow she got injured on a mission. Whatever it was though got Blake to finally stop what she was doing to Yang, so that's good. Unfortunately, since it happened she has been blaming herself for Yang's condition. Yang hasn't really spoken to the rest of them or even talked about what happened to her. You know how Ruby was before due to everything and unsurprisingly, she hasn't taken this very well either. She erupted at Blake. You would have been impressed if not for the situation surrounding it." A sad smile came upon his face once more as he stated this. She would be really proud of Ruby for having such a fire burning within her once she woke up.

"Also, what we thought might happen did come to pass. Weiss and her are not even speaking now, though that is for the most part on Ruby's side. Weiss has tried to talk with her but Ruby has refused and now she barely is even around her. Weiss hasn't taken any of it at all well. In fact she has been becoming more and more upset and emotional since. A few days ago it got so bad her that sister was called to come to Beacon. I don't think you know but Winter, her sister, is apart of the military in Atlus. I heard she has either taken some leave to be here with Weiss or she has been reassigned for the time to Vale. I've been able to spend sometime with here and I think you would really like her."

Ren's expression grew even more sad as he continued. "I wish Weiss would have listened to you and just talked to her. I'm certain that Ruby would have understood, at least a bit and even if she didn't I can't imagine things would be worse than they are right now. Since their falling out Ruby has started spending time with that team from Mistral, mostly with their teammate that just recently arrived. I know if you were awake you would want to challenge her to make sure Ruby would be alright, but I'm not sure how that would go." He grew silent for a moment as he thought more on the mysterious member. "Something feels off about her." Again he paused, trying to put to words what he felt from her.

"She feels, vicious, and blood soaked. I've tried to talk to Ruby but I haven't been able to talk to her. She doesn't talk much to anyone else recently. I think they might be in some sort of relationship based on what I've seen of them. I've also tried to ask Pyrrha but even she hasn't been able to tell me what exactly is going on between them. Apparently they keep to themselves even when with the rest of her team."

Once he finished a feeling of unease and lost sense of direction crept up and festered within him. Turning to face Nora again he quietly said, "I'm not sure what to do to help them."

…

 _We couldn't say them_

 _So now we just pray them_

…

As he said this his eyes began to sting as the first drops of tears met them. He once again grabbed her hand into his to both reassure himself and to be closer to her as he weakly begged, "I wish you would wake up and be alright. I- it's not the same without you. Nothing feels right. I'm not myself without you and I, feel lost. Please wake up, Nora. Please. I-I can't lose you too. We've lost so much already. I just… please don't go on without me. I never got to say what I wanted to say to you. What I needed to tell you. I know you already know, but, it's not the same. I need to say it. To tell you how I feel."

Ren tightly grasped and rested his head on the upturned sides of his hands as sobs racked through his body. Desperation tinged his voice as he pleaded, "Please, give me the chance. Please Nora. Just come back to me."

…

 _Words that we couldn't say_


End file.
